Cessna 182 accident near Truckee, California, May 31, 1982
On May 31, 1982 at about 9:20 pm local time, a Cessna 182, registered N5056D, was destroyed in an accident near Truckee, California (Truckee-Tahoe airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 1982 · about 9:20 pm local time
- Place
- Truckee, California · Truckee-Tahoe
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182 · all 182s on the register
- Registration
- N5056D · no longer on the register · serial 51156
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT HAD RETURNED TO THE AIRPORT AFTER A GLIDER TOWING OPERATION OF ABOUT 10 MINUTES. RUNWAY 19 WAS IN USE. REPORTEDLY, THE TERRAIN TO THE NORTH OF RUNWAY 19 WAS ABOUT 100 FT LOWER THAN THE AIRPORT ELEVATION. A WITNESS REPORTED THAT HE HEARD THE SOUND OF FULL POWER APPLICATION AND THEN OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT IN A STEEP CLIMB COMING BACK UP TO THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT WAS THEN OBSERVED TO TURN LEFT AND CRASH INTO TREES ON A STEEP SLOPE. THE MAGNETIC DIRECTION OF IMPACT WAS ABOUT 120 DEGREES. REPORTEDLY, THE PILOT HAD BEEN COUNSELED AFTER HIS PREVIOUS FLIGHT THAT HIS LANDING APPROACH WAS TOO LOW. THE DENSITY ALTITUDE WAS ABOUT 7100 FT.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 815 hours in all; 800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,813 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 16 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: O-470L 265 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TRR Truckee CA at 2:10 pm
- Destination: TRR Truckee CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 3,201 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 138°F (59°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N5056D the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.